Consumer products often contain benefit agents, such as conditioning agents or perfume, to provide enhancements to surfaces treated with the consumer product such as improved hand feel benefits (e.g. soft, silky feel), odor control benefits, and the like. Such benefits are desired by consumers of products such as hair care products, like shampoo or hair conditioners, and fabric care products, such as laundry detergents or fabric softeners.
Such consumer products are typically provided in the form of aqueous liquid products. Since many desirable benefit agents are hydrophobic in nature, it can be a challenge to create a stable aqueous liquid formulation containing hydrophobic benefit agents. As a result, such benefit agents are typically incorporated in aqueous liquid compositions in the form of emulsions or other systems comprising emulsion droplets/particles having relatively small particle size benefits agents. One drawback of having small particle size benefit agents is that it can be difficult to deposit and retain small particle size benefit agents on the treated surface, especially if the surfaces are being treated in the context of an aqueous treatment liquor such as a detergent treatment liquor in a washing machine or a treatment liquor that a consumer uses in the shower when shampooing and/or conditioning her hair. As a result, the small particle size benefit agents can be easily washed down the drain and therefore wasted, as opposed to being deposited and retained on surfaces to enhance the surface.
Past attempts to enhance deposition of relatively small particle size benefits agents have generally relied on the use of deposition aids and/or coacervates, such as cationic polymers and/or complexes formed between deposition aids and other ingredients in the treatment liquor. This approach suffers from a disadvantage in that such deposition aids and/or coacervates may be undesirable on the treated surface, may increase cost or complexity of the consumer product, or may create other issues such as material incompatibilities.
In order to address such drawbacks, attempts have been made to provide delivery systems, such as encapsulation systems, for the hydrophobic benefit agents in order to enhance their deposition and retention on surfaces while remaining stable in an aqueous liquid product. These delivery systems, however, can limit the effectiveness of the benefit agents or lead to other issues.
It is therefore desired to provide a consumer product that can provide an aqueous treatment liquor having relatively large particle size benefit agents without the need for liquid delivery systems that can interfere with the effectiveness of the benefit agent being deposited on the treated surfaces.